Swinging gate



2 She-ets-8heet 1 N H LONG Swinging-Gate. No. 228,823. Patented June15,1880.

I I a a, I, 5/ 1 E INVENTOfiP.

WITNESSES. aww; v/ 9 UNITED STATES ATENT Erica.

NATHAN H. LONG, OF MUNGIE, INDIANA.

SWINGING GATE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 228,823, dated June 15,1880. Application filed February 24, 1880.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, NATHAN H. LONG, of thecity of Muncie, county of Delaware, and State of Indiana, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Swinging Gates, of which thefollowing is a specification.

The object of my invention is, first, to pro duce an automatic gate inwhich, when the hinge-rod is forced around by the action of the"ehicle-wheels upon the trip-rods, the operatinghinge will beautomatically lockedjn position, and thus remain until the gate hasswung nearly or quite open or shut; and, second, to so construct thelower hinge and the hinge-rod upon which it bears that said hinge willbe an additional means of causing the gate to swing open or closed,auxiliary to the tilting or throwing the gate out of balance, which isthe primary means of causing said effect.

The first object is accomplished by the construction and operation ofthe upper end of the hinge-rod and its attachments, as will behereinafter more fully described, and the second by thepeculiarly-constructed lower gatehinge in combination with a projectionon the hinge-rod.

Reference is had to the accompanying drawings, forming part hereof, ofwhich Figure 1 is a perspective view of my improved gate; Fig. 2, alongitudinal vertical section thereof; Fig. 3, an elevation of the gatewhen open, but just starting to close. Fig. 4 is a plan of theupper-hinge mechanism when the gateis closed. Fig.5 is a similar viewwhen the gate is open; Fig. 6, a similar view to Fig. 4, except that thetilting mechanism has been operated and the gate is in position as juststarting to swing open. Fig. 7 is similar to Fig. 5, except that themechanism has been operated as in Fig. 6 and the gate is ready to swingshut. Fig. 8 is a plan view, similar to Fig. 4, of an alternate form ofupper-hinge mechanism. Fig. 9 is a longitudinal vertical section of thesame on the dotted line mm. The remainder of this view, if completed,would be the same as Fig. 2, as the other parts are alike in both cases.

In said drawings, the portions marked A represent the gate proper; B,the post to which it is hung; G, the post against which it shuts; D, thepost against which it opens; E, a vertical rod, forming thehinge-pintles for the gate. and, in connection with theother hingemechanism, constituting the immediate means by which the gate isoperated; F, a cross-bar or crank attachment on the bottom of the rod E,by which it is operated; G, connecting rods or bars, which connect thebar F and the triprods; and H, trip-rods, with which the wheels of thevehicles come in contact, and thus impart power to the gate-operatingmechanism.

Attached to the rear gate-upright, A, are two hinge parts, ac, andattached to the post B are other hinge parts, b b.

The vertical rod E is either bent at the top,

as shown in Fig.2, or has an equivalent branch,

E, as shown in Fig. 9.

Interposed between the hinge parts a and bis a bar, I, having aheart-shaped opening centrally located therein. If the top of the rod Eis constructed as shown in Fig. 2, this bar I is rigidly attachedthereto, and a stud, 11 on the hinge part 1; passes through theheart-shaped opening, and serves as a pivot for said bar. If the rod Eis constructed as shown in Fig. 9, the top of the straight part passesthrough the hinge partb and takes the place of the stud b while thebranch E works in a slot in the bar I, instead of being rigidly affixedthereto. As will be readily understood, the operationof these parts ispractically the same in both instances, the second describedconstruction varying from the first only in that by it the rod E remainsalways vertical, while in the first it tips slightly as the stud changesits position in the heartshaped orifice in the bar I.

The operation of my gate is as follows: The vehicle-wheels operate,through the trip-rods H and connecting-rods G, to turn the vertical rodE in the usual manner of such gates. It is well understood by thosefamiliar with such devices that the vehiclewheel forces the triprodentirely down almost instantaneously, and retains it there onlymomentarily, and therefore that there is no active pressure on the gateexcept for a very limited space of time, in which it is impossible forthe gate to swing entirely open or shut. The result has been that suchgates would often remain partially open by reason of a reaction of themechanism after the wheel had left the trip-rod. By

means of the bar 1, having the heart-shaped orifice and appropriatecatches, M, on the post B, I am enabled to avoid this difficulty.

As before indicated, the mechanism is operated at once to its fullextent by the wheel impact upon the tri p-rods, and the vertical rod isconsequently given the one-fourth revolution necessary to turn the gateinstantaneouslyand before the gate has acquired any perceptible swingingmotion. This causes the bar I to move on its pivot, so that said pivotshall occupy one of the sides of the heart-shaped orifice instead of itspoint, and the bar is thus made to move rearwardly a suflicientdistance, so that its point will engage with one of the catches i or i,as shown in Figspo and 7, and is thereby held in position until the gateswings into position, when it draws the bar forward, and the pivotresumes its place, as in Figs. 4 and 5.

At the proper point in the rod E is set the horizontal stud 0, uponwhich one portion of the hinge part a rests. Said hinge part is inclineddownwardly in the manner most clearly shown in Fig. 3, so that its face,which rests upon the stud, shall have a tendency to slide upon saidstud, and thus accelerate the motion of the gate, or enable the same tobe operated when tilted to a less angle than would otherwise benecessary.

Passing through the front upright, A of the gate is an ordinaryspring-latch, J, pivoted atj, and actuated by the spring K and whichengages with the catch L upon the post 0, or a similar catch, L, uponthe post D. Upon the lower part of the catch L is a projection, M, andimmediately above, upon the upright A is a corresponding projection, N,which rests upon the projection M when the gate is shut, and serves thedouble purpose of preventing the gate from sagging and insuring that thelatch shall always hear the proper relation to the catch.

The hinge part to projects far enough backward to nearly come in contactwith the pivot b when the gate is in closed position. This, while itdoes not interfere with the free working of the hinge mechanism,prevents the gate from being lifted or tilted back when the mechanism isnot regularly operated, and thus secures it from being unlatched byanimals pushing or lifting against it.

A double gate may be formed on my plan by simply adding another arm tothe bar Fat the proper angle and connecting it by a rod to acorresponding arm of a similarly-operat ing mechanism on the secondgate, the said rod usually being protected by passing it through a pipeor tube below the roadway.

As will be observed by an examination of Figs. 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8, thehinge part b is attached to the post B to one side of the hingecenter,and extends out the proper distance toward the gate, and then turns atabout right angles with itself, so that the stud b thereon may becentral, while a space is left behind for the entry of the top of therod E.

Having thus fully described my saidinvention, what Iclaim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In an automatic gate-11in ge mechanism, an intermediate bar, I,between the two halves of the upper hinge, said bar being constructed,by means of an opening larger than the pivot on which it rests, torecede when the mechanism is operated and engage with catches upon thegate-post, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

2. In an automatic gate-hinge mechanism, the combination of the verticalrod E, having horizontal. stud c therein, and the down wardlyinclinedhinge part a, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

3. In an automatic gate-hinge mechanism in which a pivot passes througha heart-shaped or elongated slot in a bar, I, a projection upon the reargate-upright, A, which comes in close proximity to said pivot,substantially as and for the purposes herein set forth.

4:- In an automatic gate-hinge mechanism, an intermediate bar, I,between the two upper hinge parts, having a heart shaped orificetherein, through which the stud on which it moves passes, substantiallyas and for the purposes set forth.

5. The combination of the trip-rods H, rods Gr, vertical rod E, hingeparts a and Z), intermediate piece, I, -and catches t i, all constrnctedand operating substantially as described, and for the purpose specified.

6. The combination of the trip-rods H, rods G, Vertical rod E, hingeparts a and b, and horizontal stud 0, working between the parts a and b,all arranged and operating substantially in the mannerand for thepurposes herein set forth.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal, at Muncie,Indiana, this 10th day of February, .A. D. 1880.

NATHAN H. LONG.

